SOCCER
MLS Cup Playoffs 2026 Schedule: Inter Miami and Vancouver Set Openers
Inter Miami hosts Columbus on Nov. 21. Vancouver opens Nov. 22 against Seattle or Real Salt Lake. See the kickoff times and U.S. and Canadian TV listings.
Inter Miami will host the Columbus Crew at 6 p.m. ET on Saturday, Nov. 21, in the first MLS Cup playoff match at Nu Stadium. The Vancouver Whitecaps will open the next night at 8:30 p.m. ET at BC Place against the winner of Seattle and Real Salt Lake.
Major League Soccer released the first-round schedule on Sunday. The two wild-card matches come first, on Thursday, Nov. 19. Orlando City hosts FC Cincinnati at 7:30 p.m. ET, and Seattle hosts Real Salt Lake at 10 p.m. ET. Apple TV carries both.
2026 MLS Cup playoffs opening schedule
| Date | Match | Kickoff (ET) |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 19 | FC Cincinnati at Orlando City | 7:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 19 | Real Salt Lake at Seattle | 10 p.m. |
| Nov. 21 | Philadelphia at New England | 2 p.m. |
| Nov. 21 | Portland at Dallas | 4 p.m. |
| Nov. 21 | Columbus at Inter Miami | 6 p.m. |
| Nov. 22 | Orlando or Cincinnati at Nashville | 4 p.m. |
| Nov. 22 | Charlotte at Chicago | 6:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 22 | Seattle or Salt Lake at Vancouver | 8:30 p.m. |
| Nov. 23 | LAFC at St. Louis | 8 p.m. |
| Nov. 24 | Houston at San Jose | 10 p.m. |
How to watch in the U.S. and Canada
Apple TV carries every playoff match. TSN and RDS also carry Vancouver’s opener. The league lists FS1 and Fox Deportes in the U.S. and TSN and RDS in Canada for the Nashville, Chicago, St. Louis and San Jose openers. The Dec. 18 MLS Cup final will air on Fox and Fox Deportes in the U.S. and TSN and RDS in Canada, in addition to Apple TV.
The higher seed hosts the first match in each best-of-three series and the third if needed. The lower seed hosts Game 2. A match tied after regulation in the wild-card round or Round One goes straight to penalties. The first club to win twice advances.
Miami’s second match is at Columbus on Nov. 27 at 8 p.m. ET. Vancouver visits the wild-card winner at 10 p.m. ET that night, at Lumen Field if Seattle advances or at America First Field if Salt Lake wins.
Photo: Cuban Boy / Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0.
